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In agriculture, leaching is the loss of water-soluble plant nutrients from the soil, due to rain and irrigation. Soil structure , crop planting, type and application rates of fertilizers , and other factors are taken into account to avoid excessive nutrient loss.
In pedology, leaching is the removal of soluble materials from one zone in soil to another via water movement in the profile. [1] It is a mechanism of soil formation distinct from the soil forming process of eluviation , which is the loss of mineral and organic colloids .
Nutrients in the soil are taken up by the plant through its roots, and in particular its root hairs.To be taken up by a plant, a nutrient element must be located near the root surface; however, the supply of nutrients in contact with the root is rapidly depleted within a distance of ca. 2 mm. [14] There are three basic mechanisms whereby nutrient ions dissolved in the soil solution are brought ...
A nutrient cycle (or ecological recycling) is the movement and exchange of inorganic and organic matter back into the production of matter. Energy flow is a unidirectional and noncyclic pathway, whereas the movement of mineral nutrients is cyclic.
The most abundant ion in plant cells is the potassium ion. [2] Plants take up potassium for plant growth and function. A portion of potassium uptake in plants can be attributed to weathering of primary minerals, but plants can also ‘pump’ potassium from deeper soil layers to increase levels of surface K. [2] Potassium stored in plant matter can be returned to the soil during decomposition ...
When available N exceeds the ecosystem's (i.e., vegetation, soil, and microbes, etc.) uptake capacity, N saturationoccurs and excess N is lost to surface waters, groundwater, and the atmosphere. [12] [17] [18] N saturation can result in nutrient imbalances (e.g., loss of calcium due to nitrate leaching) and possible forest decline. [13]
Leaching is controlled largely by the hydraulic conductivity of the soil, which is dependent on particle size and relative density that the soil has been consolidated to via stress. [4] Diffusion is controlled by other factors such as pore size and soil skeleton, tortuosity of flow path, and distribution of the solvent (water) and solutes.
Leaching is affected by the soil, the pesticide, and rainfall and irrigation. Leaching is most likely to happen if using a water-soluble pesticide, when the soil tends to be sandy in texture; if excessive watering occurs just after pesticide application; if the adsorption ability of the pesticide to the soil is low.